Zigzag-course control.



E. E. HALL.

ZIGZAG COURSE CONTROL; APPLICATION FILED JULY 11. 1917.

Patented Jan.15, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

' INVENTOR ELF/ah WITNESSES %q/% mi? 762th A TTORNEYS E. E. HALL.

ZIGZAG COURSE comm.

APPLICATION FILED JULY Ill 1917- 6. Patented Jan. 15, 1918.

. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT oFFIo nnnnsr 1:. mm, on NEW 'ELTHAM, Lennon, ENGLAND.

zr'ezne-ooonsn common.

i To all whom it may concern:-

Be it known that; I, ERNEST E. HALL, a subject of the King of GreatBritain, and a resident of New Eltham, London, S. 13., England, have invented a new and Improved Zigzag-Course Control, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescrlption.

This inventionrelates to course. controls and particularly to an improved constructionuwhereby the steersman may instantly shift the direction of travel of a ship without an audible order from the ofiicer. in charge. 1; U

Theobject in view is to provide an improved construction adapted to be. placed near the steersman of a ship whereby the ship may be steered on a specified course and turned exactly at the right time on the different courses.

. Another objectvof the invention is to provide a device which maybe adjusted and the plan or course varied as often as necessary and yet maintain the ship near its true course. 1. V i M a i A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved device including chart members which will insurethe correct steering of the ship in a zigzag course and bring the shipback to a true course at stated intervals. l c

. In the"accompanying drawings Figure. 1 is a diagramshowing my improved zig-zag course control device.

Fig. 2is a longitudinal horizontal section through a course control formedaccording to my invention.

Fig. 3 is a detail perspective viewof one of the contact bars shown'in Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a diagram showing a plotted course. a I a 3 Referring to the accompanying drawings by numerals, l'is a boardor support ofany kind, to which holders 2 and 3 are secured, these holders being provided so as to accommodate the slips 4, 5, 6 and 7, respectively, said slips containing information hereinafter fully described. Arranged adjacent the holders 2 and 3 are rows of lamps 8 and 9'connected on one side to the common return wire 10 and on the opposite side to the respective sockets 11. The common return wire 10 is connected to a bell or other sounding device 12, which in turn is connected to a.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patent ed Jan. 15,1918.

Application filed July 11, 1917. Serial mi. 180,001:

battery or source of current 13, said battery or source of" current b'elng connected or grounded on the clock 14 so as to maintain M the "minute hand 15 continually in electrical communication 'with the source -of "current. The clock le-may be any suitable make of clock andma'y be clamped toboardl in any desired manner.

A ring 16is clamped by means to the board 1, said ringbeing spaced therefrom by supporting legs 17 so as not to come in contact with the clock. Ring 16 is provided-with a number of arc-shaped slots suitable fastening 18 for accommodating the various movable contacts 19 shown in detail in Fig. 3. These contacts are clamped by suitable bolts 20 to the ring 16 and extend to a position above the outer end of the minute hand 15 so that when a metallic pin 21 is fittted into the apertures 22 and 23 arranged in each of the contact members, it is in the path of movement of the'hand' so that when the hand reaches the pin the circuit of the bell 12 will be closed provided the pin21is connected by the wire 24 to one of'the sockets 11. This is preferably done by having a pin '25connected with wire '24=*and formed of such" a size as to fit the socketll, as shown in Fig.1.

In the drawingthe "parts are arranged and theslips' l and 5are provided with such information as to produce an hours plotbell 12-is sounded and the course of the ship is changed'by the steersman. The officer in charge also immediately removes plug or pin 21 from the position'shown in Fig. 1 to the next contact, which in this instance is arranged between seven oclock and eight oclock. Pin 25 is also removed and placed in the next lower socket. When the hand 15 reaches the'pin 21 again the ships course is again changed and the pins 21 and 25 are also changed to thenext set of contacts or sockets. This method of setting forward the pins is carried out until the bell has rung after the pin 25 has beeen placed in the lowest socket 11. Another set of slipsis then provided in the-holder 2 and the arrangement of the pins repeated. If'desired. the slips 6 and 7' in holder 3 could be utilized for the second period, one period being preferably' one hour, though other periods may As the parts are arranged in Fig. 1a

course is disclosed as shown by the diagram in Fig. 1. :On the slip 5 will be seen orders to the steersman and the number ofminutes occupied on each of the sections of the zig: Zag course, while on. slip 4 will be seen proper information indicating the direction of travel of the ship. As shown in the dia:

. gram andas indicated on the slips 4 and 5 ing 80 W. ofN. as indicated on slip 4:-

in Fig. 1, the ship leaves the true course indicated by the line 26 in Fig. 4: and followsa course to port for seven and one-half minutes, as indicated at 27, said course be 4. t the end of the seven and one-halfminutes the hand 15 moves to a position in contact with the pin 21 as above described so that the bell 12 will be sounded. The steersman thenimmediately swings the ship around to the course 28, which is 45 starboard, as indicated on slip 5. This course is held for ten minutes or until the hand 15 strikes the pin21 again so as to sound the bell 12.; The steersman then immediately turns the ship to a true northern course, which is parallel to the true course, and maintains the ship ingits new course for seven and one-half minutes. As soon asflthe bell rings the steersman againstchanges the course, as shown at 29, andmaintains it at the course 29. for twelve and one-half minutes.

A particular zig-zag course is shown plotted in Fig. & for one hour, but the steersman does not see this course though the ship will follow this-course when the steersmanfollows/the instructions on sheet 5, and the "oflicer in chargewill know the exact position of the ship at all timesby glancing .at theplotted course and; at :the information on slip 4-, which gives the true direction .of movement of the ship. At the end-,oflthe hour the officer in chargecould have, the 7 same zig-zag course repeatedor couldsubstitute any other desired plotted coiirs,e,-as, ,for instance, areverse of the first courses "Que hours zig-zag course has been shown butfit will be understoodthat a half liours,,,course, a twohours course or a course. of.v anydesired length: of time may be provided and arranged in both of the. liolders,2 and 3,. It will also be understood that the contacts adjacentthe clock will be adjusted to suit the informationion the respectiveslips. The zig-zag produced by edited at hittin he: co r e f th ship is scientifically arranged so that for the entire time occupied in passingcfrom one 'itriking" sand bars or going ashore when nearing land. The zig-zag course produced is intended to confuse the oflicers of a'sub marine whenattempting to fire a torpedo at a. merchant ship or other ship. The changing of the course everyfewminutes will prevent the proper calculation inorder'to cause thetorpedo to strike,'but if the course was not properly laid out in respect tothe true course the ship ,mightzaccidentally go ash0re.'-

What Iclaim is:

1.1In a device for causing the steersman of a ship to properly steer the ship in a zigzag'course so as to leave the true courseat onepoint and comeback tosaid true course after a predetermined interval, an order slip provided with orders arranged in a certain sequence, an information slip provided with information indicating the direction of movement of the ship, an alarm, means for causing said alarm to operate, a clock for causing said means to operate said alarm, and a manually operated switching mechnism formed so as to be shifted successively in the same sequence as the arrangement of the orders on said slip whereby the steersman of the ship may change the course immediately upon the sounding of said signal and thereby "maintain the true zigezag course from one point on the true course to a second point on the true course;

2. In a device of thecharacter described, a support, a clock arranged on said support provided with a minute hand, a ring arranged near'said clock, a plurality of adjustable contacts arranged on said ring, said contacts beingso positioned that said min: ute hand willpass near the same during its. movement, an order sheet provided with diflerent information thereon, an electrical socket arranged .opposite each of said articles of information, an alarm, means for connecting: said sockets with said alarm,

means for connecting said alarm with-said minute hand, saidlast mentioned means including, a source of current,'and an electrical connector-adapted to have oneend in elec trical contact with anyv of said socketsand the opposite end in contact with any of said contacts. '1

3. "In a device of the character described, a support, a clock arranged onsaidsup port, a ring. connected with said support adjacent said clock," a plurality of j spaced contacts arranged. on said ring,- a-pin adapted to be brought into engagement with any of'said contactsland to project into the path of movement of the minute hand of source of current, and means adapted to be said clock, a holder arranged near the clock, positioned in any of said sockets and an order slip rovided With spaced orders brought into contact with said pin, Where- 10 arranged in sald holder, a signal member, a by when said hand strikes said pin said socket arranged opposite each of said orders, signal will be operated.

electrical means connecting said sockets with said signal member, said hand and a ERNEST E. HALL.

copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. O. 

